The Grandmaster's Creed
by PhalanxCrusader
Summary: There is a very mysterious element as to how and why knights are in shinobi lands, taking 2 men and all of Konoha to new places. Eventual Naruhina... kind of. It's sort of a crossover also. You have to read to discover more.
1. The Mystery Begins

Three kunoichi entered a spa-resort close to the Sound Country's border where they were staying. Exhausted from the extreme boredom, they all collapsed into chairs and began to order food and drink with slightly annoyed reactions from the over-worked waiters.

"I can't believe we decided to do this idiotic excuse of a mission!" exclaimed Sakura. Sure, spying on whatever actions Orochimaru may be taking could prove to be valuable information to rescue her precious Sasuke-kun, however, the manner of their gathering seemed useless. "Why would farmers and townspeople who obviously aren't tied in with and live in fear of Orochimaru be of any use to us accept for punching-bags!"

"Geese Sakura, pipe down!" yelled Tsunade-sama as she slammed the table with her fist, nearly breaking the poor defenseless piece of wood. "Don't you want to grow as a shinobi, in the good and…not so good times? This mission could prove vital for our cause, even if it may seem….annoying at times. Let's just say I have an old score to settle." She sighed as she poured herself another bottle of sake. "What do you think about this all, Hinata?"

The ripe kunoichi, at age 17, had grown a lot in these past couple of years. With ever-adding grief to the fact that her Naruto-kun would never be her Naruto-kun because she could never tell him and he had been away for a year and a half, Hinata had grown partially cold and extremely tough, however she was still kind and warm, which made her want to grow more shut off to people in sorrow. Hinata was capable of doing things now that she never even dreamed of before, however her heart had a heavy burden on it constantly. Nights of endless strife produced what was sitting at the table with the other two people.

"Huh? I think this mission could serve Konohagakure well in the end, however getting there is…a drag. I don't know why you chose the three of us, though. It must involve me being weak and needing to learn something or something of that nature. I have…mixed feelings about the mission I guess…" Hinata said quietly as she looked down and twiddled her fingers a bit; a habit which she thought she was over, but never completely overcame. When she realized what she was doing, she absentmindedly put a hand on her kunai-strap and had an enraged look on her face (her byakugan absentmindedly activated).

"Hinata!" Tsunade said softly, but with enough force to make her point known. "You are vital to this mission and, I know, the last thing you want is pity, and I will give you none. You are here for your jyuuken, Sakura for her strength and medic-nin abilities, and me, well, I'm the Hokage, must I say more? (Honestly, I'd do anything with anyone to not be cooked up in that cursed tower with mounds of paperwork!) Due to recent events of teammates being gone and general occupations, we've been forced to be in this 3-woman cell for a while now, however our unique skills balance it out, and it's quite beneficial." She smirked. "Remember how we got that missing-nin from Grass who was jounin leveled at least? Heck, the only thing that's unsettling is the state of the village currently without me. Oh well, they could use some womaning-up of their own without me having to walk them step by step." Tsunade shifted from her cheerful, loud tone "however, than that blasted war had to be going on…"

Sakura and Hinata looked at each other and rolled their eyes slightly in the first parts of the speech, giving off friendly vibes to each other, and a "she's crazy" look, having connotations toward Tsunade, even though they each realized that what she said was valid and true to their current position. But when she mentioned the war, they each retained a serious face.

At that moment, two knights walked into the resort.

Tsunade's face lit up in shock. "They, they are …"

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"William, be strong" said a man by the name of Girard. Two knights, clad in mail and partial plate all around their bodies, each wearing a helmet, approached a spa-resort in a small town. When they entered, they immediately went to the front desk, laid a ton of money on the table, and requested a room. The clerk hesitated and was about to go through regulations of the hotel, when they piled more coins on the desk (foreign looking ones), indicating an urgency to get the room, and grabbed a room-key card, and ran upstairs.

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When the two men had fled upstairs, the kunoichi stared in disbelief at what they had witnessed. Sakura was initially surprised, yet dismissed it and mentally noted, _what's their problem?_ Hinata simply sat there with jaw-agape as memories flooded her. Hinata definitely wanted to know more about them. Tsunade advised them to be on their guards for she sensed danger was coming.

Just than, five ninja wearing Sound hitae-ate walked in. They immediately walked to the clerk, brandishing a "wanted" poster which bore one of the knights that had walked in. The clerk quickly pointed to the direction of the stairs, and the ninja dashed up.

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The environment was tense to say the least. The kunoichi each had a sense of nervousness in the atmosphere. Suddenly, the two knights came back stairs again in a quick walk.

"Grandmaster Girard!" said the slightly shorter knight, "Where are we going to go? Let's get going! We have a few minutes at most before they come back down here!"

Girard walked slowly to the window. He then proceeded to take off his helmet. "I'm tired, William." He started. "I won't run anymore. Where would we run? Any of the five ninja nations sound good? Where are my legions? I have none! I want to eat one meal in peace… and whatever happens, we go down giving them cool steel."

Tsunade whispered to the two teenagers, "There's no doubt about it. That was definitely their leader."

The other knight, William, then took off his helmet. Hinata gasped. While it was rude to stare, he looked exactly like Naruto. Hinata, surprising herself, developed a blush.

William stared at Hinata for a second, looking shocked, then hesitated, as he walked to the clerk and ordered portions of beef, with an emphasis on urgency. Luckily, two meals were already prepared with their names on them. The two knights than took seats at a table at the opposite side of the room from the kunoichi. In a minute, the clerk delivered the food.

Girard glanced at Tsunade for an intense moment, as if he recognized her, than they proceeded to eat in a very uncomfortable silence. In the middle of their meal, the 5 ninja came downstairs.

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The ninja surrounded their table.

"It looks as if we finally found the great pathetic excuse of a leader, Girard." The leader said. William looked up and tensed, however Girard told his friend "eat, and enjoy your meal." And continued eating, blatantly ignoring the comment made by the Sound-nin.

With a look of shock and rage, the leader roared "Excuse me! I was addressing you, Roundhead!" (Roundhead was a derogatory term given to the knights because, obviously, they wore helmets. Also, there were several other insults because knights, being normal people, had no chakra, therefore were not nearly as fast as ninja or had no techniques, other than raw sword handling). He than flipped over their trays, bearing the food with it, so that it splattered on the wall. However, Girard continued to look ahead, ignoring him.

"Orochimaru will have fun with you, scum!!!" their leader said, as he withdrew a kunai and put it dangerously near Girard's throat. The whole time, William had an expression of nervousness, however well he was trying to conceal it.

"The damn war…" Girard started quietly "IS OVER!!!" he exploded, as he flipped his own table against the wall. "Remove your bloody arm" he said, withdrawing his double handed bastard sword with one hand "if you don't want to loose it!" He than paused and yelled "I HATE NINJAS!!"

The Sound's leader smirked because he saw, in a blur, one of his ninja dash behind the knight and charge for his neck. Immediately, Girard held up his shield, effectively blocking the strike, than he turned his whole body around, swinging his sword at the helpless nin, cutting his torso straight in two. The fight had begun!

The leader's smirk turned into a slight frown as he jumped back slightly. _So the legends are true about this man_ he said to himself as he withdrew a katana and began making single-handed signs for a jutsu, _this ordinary person can kill ninja!_ He than did one of Orochimaru's favorite jutsu's, where several snakes protruded from his arm, aimed directly at Girard's heart. Acting quickly, William sliced down with a single-handed gladius, severing the snakes, thus they exploded in a cloud of smoke. Girard yelled "William!" and they went back to back. Due to experience, Girard was a master at reflexes against ninja, but William…

Just then, an array of kunai and shuriken were thrown at them. Several were blocked by their shields, however many found their target. Luckily, the knight's armor were thick and deflected the strikes, however William was slightly cut on his forearm.

Seeing his opportunity, one of the sound-nins aimed a kick for Williams's side, but he blocked it with his shield. (Shields were a serious hindrance for several ninja if they had not encountered them before, but there were ways to get around) The ninja than rotated his body and aimed a punch at his head, but William's sword found his mark. The ninja exploded with a poof. "A clone?" Girard was occupied with parrying and slicing at three ninja, who were finding it difficult to touch Girard at all. "William!" Girard yelled. The ninja saw his opportunity and took it. While William was turning around, he did a simple sound jutsu, causing blood to spew from William's mouth and ears, and easily kicked him into the wall. When he did this, a small axe protruded from his chest, thrown from Girard's direction, followed by a sword piercing his chest, and the ninja fell dead.

The three kunoichi were stunned at what they were witnessing. This was a crazy battle. Sure, the sound nins were chuunin level at best (minus the leader, who was jounin), but two knights were actually holding them off. They each debated in their minds whether they should join the fray or not. "So the legends are true about that man" Tsunade said. "I've…seen him once before, but I never imagined this." "Do we help them?" Sakura blurted out. "Well, seeing as how Orochimaru is our enemy…" Tsunade began, when suddenly Hinata, without thinking, charged at the sound ninjas from behind. Tsunade and Sakura quickly followed.

William was in pain, but not extreme pain. He quickly gathered himself, and just in time because a ninja charged him. He rammed his shield forward, hitting the ninja, than sliced with his gladius. Several clangs were heard as he engaged the ninja, blocking every hit and counter attacking. When they were locked sword and kunai, William simply held the position. It was a battle of strength. He then dropped the shield and jumped back, brandishing a claymore, and delivered a series of blows. They were locked again. He than simply thrust upwards with his gladius, as blood sprouted out of the man's chest. Surprisingly, the ninja flew back as several chakra-enduced strikes hit him in the back at the same time, with a girl following him. William stood there, stunned at what had happened.

Girard barely had time to think. 3 ninja had been assaulting him the whole time, and he was parrying on all sides, constantly shifting positions. _It's time to end this. _In a brilliant act of swordsmanship, he parried with his shield on one side, sending the ninja flying and stabbed at the other. They weren't attacking all at once now. Girard ducked and slashed to the left, cutting off a ninja's leg, quickly parrying with his shield on the other side and stabbing his sword over it, stabbing through another ninja's heart, and sliced his shield to the right, where the final unfortunate ninja who was charging took the hit, and he proceeded to thrust his sword into him. Tsunade and Sakura were shocked, yet Tsunade still punched one of the just stabbed ninjas into the wall and out of the resort. Finally, calm overtook the spa resort, and everyone just stared at each other and the carcasses.

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Realizing what the three kunoichi had done, Girard fell to his knees and told William to do the same. "Oh Gracious Hokage" he began, however his tone betrayed the degree of thankfulness "let us go unharmed and we will be on our way. Please, I have no men and several ninja are tracking me" The kunoichi tensed for a second, but finally Tsunade said "Girard, you are welcome to return to Konohagakure with us." Girard paused, as if contemplating his answer, turned to William, than looked back and said "Deal, as long as you grant William the right to a citizenship in Konoha, and a good life. All that matters is that he lives." He paused, and said "I do not wish to repeat the same actions I did in the war." Tsunade was surprised by his answer, but readily accepted. "We set out at dawn."

Hinata had just been starring at William the whole time, and occasionally he glanced over. However, as an after affect of the jutsu performed on him, tons of blood poured out of his mouth as his chest tightened. He was panting, and finally fell on his face, unconscious.

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Well, that's the end of chapter one! This is my first attempt at a fan fiction, and is primarily for my enjoyment, but maybe you guys will like it. It will have a strange type of naruhina in it, and sort of a crossover-like thing. This story will have a very complicated plot, which will be found out later. If you want to find out more, review and keep reading. Thanks!

Whoops, I forgot…

"Speech"

((Flashbacks))

_Thoughts_


	2. Revelations

"Speech"

((Flashbacks))

_Thoughts_

Strangely, this week and the next I may not submit as much entries because of finals. Expect the chapters to pick up in the near future. Oh, and please review!

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William woke up with a start. He noticed that something was not right, like, for one, the earth was moving below him. Upon further examination, he was riding on Girard's back. The whole party was moving at a leisurely, walking pace in the woods (undoubtedly for the knights who could not tree hop), in what appeared to be morning.

"Good morning sleepy head!" exclaimed Tsunade. When everyone looked at the form of William huddled on Girard's back, he became slightly embarrassed and quickly dismounted. Feeling nearly himself again, William walked at the same pace as the kunoichi.

Hinata looked at him and simply said "Um…h-h-hi." Than felt like a moron, and enraged to see her old habit slightly returning. _You idiot! That's all you have to say!? Just for once say something of meaning!_ She mentally screamed. "Hi" William returned, in a quick manner, which seemed sort of awkward.

"Wait!" shouted Sakura. "We have to make sure you're up to walking in your condition." Her hands began to glow a green-chakra color (because she was a medic-nin) and she approached William. William felt somewhat nervous. Just in time, Tsunade caught Sakura and said, "Uh, I think he's fine Sakura. Besides, we thoroughly checked him last night, so he should be normal." Realizing what she had just said, Tsunade mentally slapped herself and thought _Of course, it had to come out like that, in front of a teenage boy._ William just nodded, however he stifled a bit of embarrassment. Girard simply smirked. While he didn't feel completely comfortable with his company, they were beginning to feel at least like companions.

"Well" began Tsunade, taking a questioning tone upon her. "Now that everyone is here, how about we get some answers from you, Girard." The initial tense atmosphere slowly crept back into the environment. Everyone stopped, and all eyes were on Girard.

"Well, what do you want to know?" he asked in a cautious tone.

"I don't know, let's say somewhere at the beginning." Tsunade proclaimed with a little emphasis on NOW.

Girard sighed as memories flooded his mind. "I suggest you all take a seat. After all, I want the appearance of being trustworthy in front of people who are taking me into their nation." While everyone expected him to start, he just stood there with his helmet on, starring at the floor, lost in a world of his own.

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((The group of 30 men marched and trudged along.

"They will kill us all!" one of the soldiers screamed. "They will find us in the blackness and nothing will be left of us! They will pick us off one by one!" "SHUT UP!" screamed the commander, who was mounted on a horse. "KEEP MARCHING!"

Girard was in the ranks of this massive square testudo formation (where all the shields are covering vital point in front, on the side, and above the soldiers, anticipating an attack). He was walking by a young man who was 15 years younger than him, who, he just recently found out, was named William, who clung to Girard emotionally for the fear he experienced over the previous days.

"I know what we saw back there was hell." Girard began. "But I think we can beat them! I know I can beat them." He raised his sword for emphasis. "Stay near me, William, and I will protect you. I am tired of this constant trampling of us like we are nothing formidable at all! I have a feeling that the next time we meet…" "You honestly think we can beat them!" another soldier budded in. "They killed everyone else in our 200-man regiment. Why do we persist with this stupid order of invading Sound? It's suicide! We have not won a single battle. Our leaders are pompous and weak! I say we return to Krak des Chevaliers, our only defense we have, and…" Girard interrupted him "But we can be strong!"

Suddenly there was a blur of movement and a whoosh sound. Each of the soldiers was knocked into reality as the first one who spoke wailed in despair "They're here!!!"

Immediately, kunai clanked against armor and shields, and volleys of arrows were fired from the knight's ranks. One thought persisted in most of the knight's minds _It is futile._

At least 50 ninja charged the ranks with a blinding speed. Left and right knights were hurled this way and that. Blood was everywhere in the air. It seemed as if they were just toying with the knights. Dangerous jutsu (ninjutsu involving an array of elemental attacks and sound specialty, including a few Sound-nins with the curse mark) and taijutsu were used in succession.

"WILLIAM!" Girard screamed at the top of his lungs. Immediately they got close and braced for the worst. Girard withdrew his bastard sword, and something, right that minute came over him. William had been parrying several attacks with both hands holding up his shield. Seeing Girard and William open and as easy targets, several careless ninja came their way. Girard performed a mad swing and blood smeared his sword. Stunned, several ninja who had witnessed this paused, and knights as well. This was a huge event because, as everyone present noted before the fight came back with twice the force, a knight had actually killed a ninja.

However, enraged ninja came from all over to slay Girard, yet he miraculously held his ground, all the more killing more ninja. Surged with new energy, the knights fought vigorously and, while most of them did die, they died taking a few ninja with them, which was incredible.

Suddenly, horns were blown from behind, and the remains of another regiment joined the fight. Everyone knew that if they survived, they would either be sentenced to one of Orochimaru's torture locations, or be the sole survivor of the battle and wander aimlessly through the woods with no hope. Yet, amidst these facts, Girard had killed a ninja.))

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Girard blinked once and shook his head, as if he had reminisced on certain startling memories. He took a deep breathe "So somewhere at the beginning is it…"

Everyone, especially the kunoichi, waited anxiously for him to begin his tale, yet had to treat it with a grain of salt, even though he seemed trustworthy enough.

"To be honest, I don't entirely understand the beginning myself," Girard started, "But I think it has something to do with me and William, like destiny." This was a strange start. Everyone gave him looks saying 'continue please.'

"The weird thing is, we did not immigrate to these ninja lands from far away, even though we are from far away. One day, we were just here."

The kunoichi gave him weird looks. "You're pulling my leg." Tsunade said, beginning to chuckle a little bit. "So one day, you all popped up in our lands, just like that." She clapped for emphasis. "Yes." Girard said. The seriousness in his voice unsettled her.

"I have no genuine idea how we got here or why, although I've thought it over several times. It must have been some kind of teleportation. After all, how does a group as large as our group was at one time, just cross the great divide?" The kunoichi nodded and understood that. To the far west of kunoichi lands, there was an ancient and mystical land known as the great divide. No-one had entered it and gotten very far, due to the fact that ninja could not use chakra in it for some reason, and there were dangers there. Certainly, no-one had been to the end of it and seen what was on the other side. The great divide is in a vast canyon, which contains the highest mountains, the lowest plains, and the oldest ruins. Not much was known about the great divide, if anyone inhabits it, or what's on the other side, accept that there was something mystical and strange about it.

"Anyways, I have a good bet that we, the knight peoples, (we have more complex names and country divisions, but for the sake of the summary) came from the other side of the great divide. We could never go all the way to the east. Somehow, we bridged it in the blink of an eye, and ended up here. All I know for certain, which is scary, is that we are here."

Girard paused, and continued.

"Since we were here and had no idea what these foreign lands were (we seem to have arrived 2 years ago), we were immediately vulnerable to ninja. You see, we have lost certain memories about our peoples back home, but we know that knights fight in close quarters and large formations. Our old leaders were fools, and after being ambushed by Ninjas, and Sound Ninjas especially, we went to war with, originally, all the ninjas we could see! This was devastating. In the first month along we probably lost close to 50,000 men by constant battles. Mysteriously, a castle came with us, known as Krak des Chevaliers..." Girard stared at Tsunade and said "I was eventually, after a year, promoted to general, and eventually the ultimate leader after I first won a battle." Girard smirked "Remember, Tsunade? I saw you at that battle when you and all the ninja villages were under the sestet alliance."

Tsunade hung her head in shame, having to remember that alliance of all ninja against all knights. They had to team up with Orochimaru of all people, and could not do anything about it because of diplomacy.

Girard hesitated. "To make a long story short...we lost. All my men, my legions, my regiments, everything are doomed. They are either all dead, captured, or giving a last stand of resistance in tons of isolated locations around the shinobi world. All I could do was travel the world with William, who was my best friend and personal student in the art of swordsmanship, and plot revenge on Orochimaru!"

Tsunade smiled. "Well, it seems we are united in that cause, at least." Everyone was silent for a while after these startling revelations.

Everyone was stunned by what Girard said. Hinata would look at Girard and especially William in a new light. While Girard was a heroic, good man, Hinata wanted to hear William talk for once and get to know him.

"Oh, excuse us." Tsunade said. "We are ninja from Konohagakure, and anyone against Orochimaru is a friend of ours!" She extended her hand finally. "Let's start over as friends." Girard took the hand and shook it, forming an alliance of trust. "I'm Tsunade, the Hokage, as you know, this is Sakura, and this is Hinata." They all waved, feeling slightly embarrassed and not knowing what else to do.

"Well" began Tsunade. "Let's set off. It will be a little less than a week if we walk, and far less if we can convince our men to hang on for some tree climbing!" she put out her hand in a victory sign. Hinata and Sakura put their hands over their eyes, very embarrassed and giving an "I don't know her" look.

"We will arrive in a small town after a day of traveling, and rest and restock there for a while." Tsunade said.

Hinata shot a glance at William. _Perfect_ she thought.

"Now, let's set out!" Tsunade said. Everyone nodded and began walking off into the distance.

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"Girard," said William, a little while later. "What are we going to do?"

Girard put a hand on his shoulder and said "Whatever they tell us to do."

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I know this isn't as long, but I updated, okay! If people are mad at me for using Krak des Chevaliers as a castle, I would just like to point out that it's one of the coolest castles in real life, in my opinion, therefore it's named that. Please don't sue! Sorry if I disappointed anyone with this chapter. As I explained above, I will update when I can.

And please, please, please review! Thanks!


	3. Outbursts

"Speech"

_Thought_

((Flashbacks))

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

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William stirred in his sleep.

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((Boom. Boom. Boom. The banging became increasingly louder.

"Grandmaster!" a soldier yelled. "The walls have been breached!" William observed the scenario from within Krak des Chevaliers. Girard just stood there, thinking, as screams ensued from all directions and the thuds increased.

They were all inside a keep in the castle, which was high up. Through the narrow slits, one could vaguely see the chaos ensuing outside. Archers on the wall could not keep firing their arrows compared to the number of people advancing, and they were slowly being forced back away from the walls. Everywhere on the walls, pike men, axe men, and swordsman were defending with their last ounces of strength, and loosing. Fast. Already, countless ninja in swarms were approaching the castle itself, below and up high.

BOOM.

There was also the persistent thud on the main gate. Below the keep, where the main hall was, 200 men huddled together against the gates, trying to keep them from prying open, which was proving more and more difficult. Knights were scurrying everywhere as fast as they could muster.

"Sir!" the knight yelled with more urgency to his voice. "What is to be done!!?" Girard still stood there pondering their present situation. _Girard, I know I am a huge hindrance, but please don't fail us now…_ thought William. "This is what we do." Girard said calmly, as he went downstairs and approached a huge slit which was above the main gate. He than climbed a narrow stairway to it, where several knights were huddled with a shield wall, picked up a spear, and threw it out at the oncoming ninja. He was in danger's way here, yet he proceeded to go back down and run up the stairs, while the remaining knights defended with shields and shot volleys of arrows and spears down. "Grandmaster!" the same knight yelled. "They have breached several of the castle's gates." Five knights surrounded Girard. "We must get you out of here. To the tunnels!" "I will not leave my men!" screamed Girard. "We stay and fight, to the death if need be."

A cold surge suddenly rushed through William. This rush was fear. Immediately, there was a huge explosion (probably due to some powerful jutsu performed), the gate came crashing inwards, and several of the 200 men died. There was an instant battle taking place as the survivors formed a shield wall. However, they were losing men at an enormous rate.

Something snapped in William. "No… not again." He said. He wasn't going to hold anyone back anymore. He had to be strong, and be brave. William withdrew his claymore, ran down the stairs, and joined the fray. "William!" Girard yelled, as he chased after him, followed by his protection. William struck a ninja quickly. He paused, horrified at his actions. He began to shake all over. Just then, a katana slashed him across the chest. Blood spurted everywhere. Girard came hacking his way through the chaos and finally put his arm around William, and pulled him out of the violence.

Most of the knights lay dead, however, due to their tactical formation, the ones left standing gave a huge fight, and several sound-nins were slain. Girard kept hacking with his free arm, yet his troops encouraged him to flee. If he died, they would have no chance left. With a final glance of sadness and urgency, Girard fled up the stairs, into several rooms, and through the secluded tunnel passageway behind a fake wall.

While they ran through the darkness with torches, William began to feel queasy. Although he didn't loose a lot of blood and the wound was not really severe, William had to stop for short periods. On one of these stops, he fell behind the rest of the group, and stumbled through the darkness.

Strange things played through his head, or were these real things? The line of reality became blurred as he saw the figure of a person in the shadows. William couldn't recognize him, yet he felt strangely drawn to inquire of him…

"Who are you?" William said. The figure just stood there, menacingly, and said, in barely above a whisper "I am closer than you think. You are one step closer to completing me."

William did not know why, but he immediately blurted out in a yell "No! I own my own body and control my own fate!" (He wasn't thinking rationally due to his state, which is also the reason he wasn't stunned with fright, but the question came from William's feelings, no doubt)

"Ah yes, what are you exactly doing here and why would Girard play such a character in your life? Are you here to make someone happy, or would everything revolving around that not be of mere significance to life? " the figure said. Strangely, this question of what the knights _were_ doing here had been thought by William just a few seconds before. Also, some things he was saying were disturbing, yet, strangely, in his mind for some reason. "I shall not meet you anytime soon. Goodbye, your friends approach." Just then, his hands glowed a blue ball of spinning chakra as he struck himself, and his remains flew everywhere.

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"William? Are you well?" one of the knights asked, as he put him around his shoulders and began to walk. In the background, one of the knight said hurriedly, "They will discover this passageway soon enough and be down here. We must make haste." "Where will we go?" Another said.

Meanwhile, Girard had helped William as well and asked "Can you keep up with us?" William paused, confused, yet terrified that there had been a figure and he had disappeared, and he answered "I'll be fine. This minor wound has taken its toll on me, though." They kept walking in haste through the dark tunnel. Suddenly, they all heard a noise coming from the direction of the tunnel where they had started. They began to jog, and William was carried by Girard. ))

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William woke up, drenched in sweat, and felt like screaming, but nothing would come. When the pure terror of his dream about what really happened in his life was over, William sat up abruptly and began to reflect, with a troubled look on his face.

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(("Damn it! Naruto!" Jiraiya said as he was busy holding off a few Akatsuki members. Naruto had previously made a mad dash, with a blazing rasengan at Itachi, yet, due to lack of experience on Itachi's level, Itachi easily caught him in a genjutsu with a flick of his finger, performing an easy goukakyu no jutsu on Naruto, laced with kunai, which hit him and sent his own rasengan into himself so that blood and several of his remains went everywhere. To prevent the caged beast (Kyuubi) from escaping and reeking havoc on all of them, Itachi and several other members performed a jutsu and were off with his body.

"NARUTO!" Jiraiya yelled, as he gave them chase.))

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The three kunoichi had stayed up late into the night discussing matters.

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(("We have arrived!" Tsunade said. Before everyone knew where they were staying in the village or where to go, she ran off muttering "Sake Sake Sake!!!"

The knights looked at the two remaining girls, and Sakura spoke up "It happens all the time. Eventually, you just get used to it."

"Well" started Girard. "I'll find the accommodations." He than gave William a knowing glance, almost telling him to go on, and he merely returned a _What?_ Face.

Just then, Hinata asked. "William, would you… like to eat dinner with me?" _OH. That._ William thought. These next few hours were going to be sort of awkward. "Sure. Wherever you want to eat is fine." Hinata and William than walked off towards a ramen stand.

Sakura was alone. On the outside, she had the appearance of being cool, but inner Sakura said _S!!! I won't be alone!! Whatever it means!!!_ "Um… I'll go to, Girard." She hurried up and caught up with him.

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The restaurant closest to them in the village happened to be a ramen stand. They ordered and sat in silence. They started off talking about their day, each other's hobbies, and William inquiring of Hinata about ninja missions and jutsu. Phrases like "How was your day?" and "So what do you like to do?" were common. However, even these were brief, and there was this constant awkward silence heavy in the atmosphere. William would look the other way in a sort of nervousness occasionally and Hinata developed a light tint of red on her cheeks.

_This is just like being with… Oh God, I can't do this._ Hinata thought.

_Finally. Something to distract us from this_ thought William. Their ramen had arrived. William ordered miso with fish. _I don't think I can compose myself in front of her. Aagh! I've been acting like a fool. She's just so… beautiful and nice…_ his thoughts were interrupted as he quickly finished his ramen. _I must look like a pig or something to her._ He thought. She just sat there, and than, unexpectedly, began to cry.

William just starred at her in shock at first, but he felt he should do something.

"Hey" he started. "It's okay." Suddenly, a wave of desire to comfort her came over him and he slowly put his arm around her shoulder.

After a few minutes of this they just sat in silence together. Finally, Hinata spoke up. "I…I'm so sorry." She began, barely able to say the words. "It's just… you remind me of someone precious to me who I could never… and now it's to late… but you're here… and I just don't know." William paid for their food and they left.

William felt extremely bad for her, but something unsettling came into his mind. He had a memory about something that had happened to him before… but there was no time to think about that now.

When they got back to the hotel, it had been night. Of course, Tsunade wasn't back yet, and probably making a scene of herself. Sakura, however, was in the hotel room bored.

"William…" Hinata began, hating herself for breaking down and sounding weak, yet not able to contain herself. "I…" That was all she said, as she hugged him.

They just stood like that for a few minutes. William didn't know how to respond, so he just hugged her back. This was the first time anything like this had happened to him before.

Sakura saw them when she came out of the room and starred in disbelief. Girard also happened to venture into the hall, and when he saw that, he quickly retired into his room. With a grin and memories flooding his head, Girard tilted his head a bit and said "Oh, to be young." He decided he would inquire about it with William later. He really looked out for William's happiness.

Finally, Hinata just broke off and said a rushed "Good night" and quickly scurried off to his room. Girard stood there in shock at what had just happened. He had… liked it? But she was in pain, so he wished he could do something for her. He slowly walked back to the room, when he suddenly remembered what he had been thinking about before… something that had happened to him and what she had said… he froze and shivered a little bit, however he shrugged it off as he entered his room))

----------------------------

"I don't know, but if you ask me, something just… seems strange about them." Sakura said, getting into her PJ's.

"Well we should certainly keep our eyes open." Tsunade began. Surprisingly, she walked into the room not drunk; however she had gambled a lot of her money away. No surprise there. "These are troubling times." Her face suddenly became dead serious. "Remember when I got that messenger bird from Jiraiya about…Naruto." Silence ensued for a moment. Hinata just sat there with a blank look on her face, masking her ever-rising grief, even though she thought a little about William liking her, but Naruto... "Then these two men just waltz into our lives and so openly are willing to become citizens of Konoha. Sure, they're trustworthy, but ANBU should keep a close watch on their activities. After all, several ninja want them dead. We have taken the mission upon ourselves to protect them. Hinata, you should scout around with your byakugan tomorrow…"

Tsunade starred at Hinata and said "Hinata…" Everyone sat in an uncomfortable silence and finally went to bed, starring at the wall and not able to sleep.

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When morning came, everyone was checked out and on the road within 10 minutes. William and Hinata gave each other quick glances on and off.

"Let's set out." Tsunade said.

Hinata immediately tree-jumped and was out of sight with an activated byakugan, while Sakura and Tsunade walked close to the men, as if anticipating an attack, but they didn't let the knights know why.

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"Damn it, where are they!" yelled a jounin-level sound-nin who wore a large, hooded robe and had a faint shimmer of light play off his glasses, as he held the spa manager's neck.

"They…they left last night" he said, terrified. The jounin dropped him and immediately ran out the door, followed by several ninja.

"Girard…" he said under his breath, and he was gone.

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Well, the chapter's complete. I finished it just for you guys before my finals! I have a definite idea where this story is going now. (I've always had a sort of general idea). It will be long. Flashbacks and chapters are open to loose interpretation by whomever, yet only I know the true purpose and meanings of them! You have to read more to find out

And possibly review ;)


	4. Directions

"Speech"

_Thought_

((Flashback))

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

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The day progressed rather uneventfully, however everyone was very unnerved. William noticed how strange it was that Tsunade and Sakura had formed a sort of perimeter around them, and Hinata, well, was nowhere to be seen.

"I've got a bad feeling about this" whispered William.

It was incredibly hard to describe or pinpoint, but the air just seemed…heavy. Something was about to happen, and everyone knew it.

Tsunade hoped her message had been answered as she trudged along, looking this way and that.

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Hinata, who had remained out of site of the main party for the whole day, constantly circling them at many yards away from the forest, was beginning to get extremely bored, seeing nothing but small creatures scuttle about. Also, she was getting increasingly distracted thinking about a certain someone and what had taken place last night. For the xth time she mentally swore and hit her head in disgust with herself. She was a shinobi for crying out loud! Feelings weren't supposed to… come out that way. Amidst this, however, she still thought about William…

During these train of thoughts, Hinata completely missed (at first) several scurrying human figures heading towards the main party.

She stopped dead in her tracks and sprinted back saying "Crap, crap, oh crap!!!"

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Tsunade was first to notice the foreign presence, and she immediately faced the intruders. Sounding as calm and uncaring as ever, she said "State your business." Tsunade gave it a pretty good attempt, but her rage came boiling up as a huge frown set over her features.

"And leave or I cannot be held responsible for what happens to you." Tsunade did have an advantage from past experiences, however: she let no fear show amidst the fact that there were 10 sound shinobi standing in front of them.

The leader, whose face was concealed by the cloak, said "Give the roundheads to me" as he stretched forth his hand, indicating them.

William and Sakura tensed a little bit while Girard and Tsunade just stood there.

"Why don't you come and get them." Tsunade seethed.

The leader of the sound-nin sighed. "Look, we don't have to do this again." He said, pulling back his hood, identifying him as Kabuto. "How about this offer, we will leave if you give us William."

William stood there with a sense of fear, but a direction of purpose as he withdrew his claymore and shield. Girard noted this and also withdrew his array of weapons.

"Oh, who told you to do that, your master?" Tsunade let out a laugh, but than got serious. "I would do nothing but kill Orochimaru. So bring it on!"

Kabuto's hands glowed blue with chakra scalpels and he and his men slowly approached the party. Girard smirked. "Hey, I remember you whelp." He said at Kabuto. Kabuto became slightly angrier and more annoyed than he already was. "Remember what happened in that certain valley?" Kabuto just ignored him, even though the gash across his chest was a painful memory. Tsunade felt sickened for having fought with Kabuto in the sestet alliance at that moment, but she prepared to kill Kabuto at that moment.

Chaos ensued as Kabuto and the sound-nin charged with lightning speed.

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Hinata arrived on the scene. "I hope I wasn't to late…" She saw several blurs of motion, indicating ninja. She immediately joined the fray and closed up a chuunin's tenketsu points. She ran towards the knights and assumed a position around them.

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Sakura and Tsunade were having an easy time because of their incredible strength. Sure, there were a few close calls, but Sakura simply used the substitution jutsu to get out of thick situations. After all, Sakura and Hinata had been chuunin for a few years now, and they would soon be ready to advance to jounin level. Tsunade was sending people flying left and right, all the time watching out for the knights. The only people who weren't moving were Girard and William, and all they could do was stand their ground.

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Girard immediately killed two careless ninja, and barely blocked a dangerous chakra scalpel. Tsunade and Kabuto began sparring. Suddenly, the battle seemed to drift into slow motion for Girard as he saw a face in the bushes. A look of horror and shock came over Girard.

"Reynald…?" he began, than said it a little louder. "Reynald!?" Girard than did something that surprised everyone and everyone in the battle indeed saw it because Girard was a powerful and important figure. He suddenly dropped his weapons and ran away into the bushes, away from the battle, leaving William to fend for himself.

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_Girard! Please don't do this_ thought William. Suddenly, William became extremely angry. He became angry with himself, at Girard, angry for being angry at Girard, and for his own weakness and fearfulness. William was barraged with kunai and shuriken and forced back a ways. _I won't be weak anymore. _Not knowing why, William was, surprisingly, angry at the apparition he had recently remembered. _This is my body!_ He mentally screamed. _It belongs to me! I don't have to complete any destiny. I control my fate!_ _I will make my own purpose!_ Just then, William felt an energy surge through him. Not knowing how or why, he could suddenly move quicker. Concentrating on his sword, the sword spiked with a luminous green energy. Without thinking, he struck at a sound Nin and cut him in half.

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Everyone who had witnessed William do this was stunned. "How…" Tsunade began. "Is…is that chakra!?" Hinata said as she dodged a punch and through a kick at a ninja.

William continued with this display of power for 10 seconds, before he dropped to one knee, exhausted, and fell to the floor even though he was still barely conscious. "What have I done?" William said. He than clenched his teeth as he prepared for the death blow at any minute from anyone and said "Why am I here?"

Hinata immediately ran in front of William and fought with every ounce to protect him.

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Girard had been sprinting for a full minute, until he couldn't see the battle anymore.

"Girard…" a slow and monotonous voice said. Girard ran after it.

"Reynald!" Girard yelled as he picked up his pace. "You're dead!" Finally, Girard caught up to the figure that had eluded him for a while in the forest. Girard just stared at his dead friend, fully clad in amour, and fell to his knees. Girard let out a weak "how?"

Suddenly, Reynald disappeared in a poof, and in his place was a hooded figure. _Of course_ thought Girard. _It was only a henge to lead me out here to kill me._ Girard withdrew a knife that he kept in his armor, when the figure spoke.

"Girard" it began, "Reynald was one of thousands of your soldiers who are dead." _How does he know!_ Thought Girard, as a wave of rage crept over him. The hooded figure stood his ground.

The figure continued. "There are things going on in this realm that you cannot possibly understand." He paused, than resumed. "Why do you stay with William and protect him?" Girard was taken back by this question. It just seemed so… out of place. _Who is this person?_

"Well, I…" Girard began, but than stopped. Why did he stay with William? They were friends since the day they met in a regiment so long ago, but why had Girard taken such a likening to him and stay with him at such lengths to protect him. What the man said was true: Why did Girard favor William over all of his dead, loyal soldiers?

"Exactly." The figure said and began to walk off. "You are being used in ways you cannot imagine and wouldn't necessarily choose." Girard frowned, and yelled "WAIT!" as he walked after the figure. He couldn't just leave. "Where are you going?" Girard said frantically, wanting to know more. The figure stopped dead in its tracks, with his back still to Girard and said "This isn't my battle, Girard, it's yours."

Suddenly, Girard noticed a ninja chasing after him. In the split second that he glanced at the ninja and looked back, the figure was gone! He had simply, disappeared or something. Girard had so many questions fill his mind at that moment. But at that moment, he was occupied. He took out his sword and prepared to meet the ninja. Girard was both angry and disturbed on the inside, without any clue why. He than met the ninja and began to slash out while the ninja backed up and let several kunai come his direction.

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There was no time to reminisce on the amazing thing with William that Tsunade had just seen. She was locked in exchanging hits with Kabuto, who wasn't going to yield that easily. "Where are you kakashi…" she muttered under her breathe.

Several blurs came onto the battlefield and immediately killed the remaining sound-nin accept for Kabuto. Tsunade smirked. _Finally._

Kakashi, full in his ANBU uniform, having just performed chidori on a sound-nin, appeared with four people wearing ANBU masks and uniforms.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." He said to Tsunade. Tsunade had a slight scowl on her face. Even in these situations, Kakashi had the nerve to act bored!

It was then that Kabuto acted.

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_Orochimaru told me preferably alive, but if there were no more options, dead would suffice._ Thought Kabuto, as he ran in the direction of William. His speed was blinding and took everyone off guard. He was going to slay William!

Before anyone could react, Itachi, wearing his akatsuki suit, appeared with his mangekyou sharingan blazing and performed the tsukiyomi eye technique. Kabuto fell in his tracks after going through that hell and Itachi simply stabbed him in the heart. Itachi than said in an eerie voice. "It's not his time to die…yet." Before anyone could react again (and a lot anyone could have done against him anyway), he took off in the form of several sparrows, and was gone.

William felt chills run down his spine at those words, but than focused on the newly-arrived people.

Everyone was stunned at Itachi, that he was even there and he had come and gone.

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After everyone was over their stupor, they stared at William, who Itachi was apparently had addressed, than looked to Tsunade.

"Hokage." One of the ANBU members said. "It is of dire important that we return to Konoha now! Jiraiya is waiting for you there and it is urgent. " Tsunade nodded. Before she could say anything else, she blurted out "Where's Girard?" Just then, Girard walked from back to the clearing from deep inside the woods, brandishing a bloodied bastard sword. He than proceeded to take off his helmet and the look on his face was one of confusion and thoughtfulness.

Tsunade decided not to ask. "Let's depart people." She yelled. However, she approached William, who was still on the floor, and Girard and said "we must get to Konoha as soon as possible, therefore you will each ride on an ANBU member's back."

Girard simply nodded. Everyone prepared to leave

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Before they left, Hinata, who was kneeling down by William said "That… was amazing." William sighed and, in a tone of slight despair, said "No…it wasn't." After hearing this, Hinata felt confused, yet with a longing to comfort William very badly. When Tsunade said they were departing, an ANBU member stood by William and Hinata stepped back. William passed out right there. Hinata blurted out a desperate "Naruto-kun!" But then, realizing what she had just said, she tensed up and touched William's right cheek than joined Tsunade and Sakura in the middle of the newly formed party.

With Tsunade's signal, several everyone took to the trees in the direction of Konoha.

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Girard, deep in thought after an hour of the ninja leaping through the trees, thought _What will happen to us?_

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Well, that's the chapter for you. Please review! I'm desperate for some reviews people! If I don't get more reviews, I may have a "surprising, sudden writer's block" set in wink-wink nudge-nudge.I'm not suggesting anything of course. Nothing to do with blackmail. Just kidding people! But seriously, I like reviews, so… review. My finals have been done for a few days now, and it's vacation, so hopefully I can write more frequently, if the cursed writer's block doesn't set in…. Thanks for reading! Oh, and are there enough mysterious elements to this story?


	5. Uncertainty

"Speech"

_Thought_

((Flashbacks))

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.

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Somewhere, in an anonymous location, several members of akatsuki, all wearing black coats with red clouds on them, and some only appearing in the form of holograms, were standing in a circle, and in the middle was Naruto.

Naruto had been in this coma for quite a while, but this was really unusual. Usually, this wouldn't be a problem for them (in fact, their work would be easier) if the victim was unconscious to abstract the demon. However, something… wasn't right. Naruto (including Kyuubi) wasn't totally there. It's like he was dead, but wasn't. The akatsuki members were currently discussing their dilemma. A certain akatsuki member whose form represented that of a mantis was disappointed that today he wouldn't be able to devour the body. Suddenly, Pain spoke in a low, grizzly, strange tone.

"There has been a disturbance" he said. Everyone stared at him. "Something is linked to this boy." Everyone including Itachi simply starred at him.

"You know what to do" he concluded, as his hologram disappeared. Several people disappeared in blurs, with their respective partners, and other holograms of people disappeared.

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William awoke in a bed, in what appeared to be a hospital. He was startled a little bit with a nurse standing over him. She simply said "William. You are to report to the Hokage at once." Not knowing exactly how to respond, William just laid there and said "Um, where…" before he could finish, she sighed with a slightly annoyed tone. "Just head for the huge red building down the main road to the right." Seeing no way to prod her for further information, he simply gathered his belongings, and left, deciding to find it for himself. William was sort of surprised at her rudeness, but shrugged it off.

Apparently only having his brown tattered rags, barely resembling a cotton shirt, and some brown cotton pants, he decided to put on most of his armor, which, embarrassingly to William, actually looked better than his actual attire. Thankfully, he had a white piece that went over his breast plate, bearing many insignias and symbols that would perhaps be more elegant. However, one question plagued his mind. Should he wear his helmet? If he did, it may look cocky and attract attention, but based on how he looked and how previous ninja have acted… he just wasn't sure. Finally, he decided to go without it and stepped out of the hospital.

As soon as he was walking on the large road, he immediately felt everyone's eyes glued on him. It was sort of unnerving, but he pressed forward, ignoring the looks, but feeling stupid for the scenario he was currently in. Also, surprisingly to William, most of the looks were laced with hatred. But how could he blame them? William, the knight who was definitely inferior to every shinobi in this village, was just waltzing in to the heart of Konohagakure, who he used to be at war with.

William recognized no-one, and occasionally turned off at the wrong places due to the vague instructions by the nurse. More eyes gathered on him and several people began following him at a distance. _Oh Great._ He thought. _This is going to be a good day._

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"Damn it, Tsunade." Exclaimed a very frustrated Jiraiya, as the two were in the middle of a very heated discussion in her office. "We have to do something about Naruto! Bad things are happening, and will happen if we wait!" Jiraiya had appeared in the village approximately 3 months ago, bloodied and beaten, however discouraged that he was without Naruto. He still had many bandages.

Tsunade was calmer, but still very concerned and angry about the situation. Even she knew that some times were best if sake was left out. Suddenly, her anger spiked and she hit the table. "I will send out a retrieval team immediately. What more can I do!?" She sighed. "I want Naruto back as much as you do. In fact, I would go myself to rescue him…" Jiraiya cut her off. Usually, he was more laid back around Tsunade, but he wasn't giving her any room for that now. "Naruto is rotting in an akatsuki hell and could be dead for all we know!"

That comment set Tsunade into focus. She couldn't argue when Naruto was definitely in the clutches of danger, and, possibly, death. "Alright, alright, you're right." Her face became incredibly serious for Tsunade. "I will notify anyone and everyone immediately." "I want to be on that team." said Jiraiya. She was about to object, but stopped herself and said "Okay, but only if the two good sannin can unite on this one." Jiraiya nodded. They worked well together and would be vital for this mission.

"Oh, before we go" Tsunade started "there is something disturbing that happened in battle before we headed back. That kid, William, was able to bring up chakra or something similar out of nothing. Also, Kabuto ran in to kill him, but Itachi appears out of nowhere and slays Kabuto, than simply vanished. Ever since Naruto was captured strange things have been happening."

Jiraiya nodded. He had vaguely heard about these incidents from Kakashi. He would have to make a mental note and think more about it later. "The whole world's going crazy ever since Naruto was captured." _That's an interesting development…_ thought Jiraiya.

Just then William came in to her office. "Oh, William" Tsunade said with a tone of urgency. "This is a bad time; we need to inform several ninja with haste. Can't say much now, but you were out for a day and slept a lot of the rest. You can explore the town, okay bye." With that Tsunade and Jiraiya disappeared in a blur, but not before Jiraiya examined William's face for a few moments. They just stood there looking at each other, than Jiraiya was gone. William just sat there, stunned and confused, and slowly got up and headed down the stairs, without the slightest of ideas of what to do with himself.

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Girard woke up after returning to Konohagakure the previous day. The Hokage had hurriedly put him in a small apartment the previous day and told him he could wander around. However, he went straight to bed because he was extremely tired. Girard sighed as he went to the bathroom and began pouring water on his face. He decided he would go to see William as soon as possible, and maybe look for people he recognized or meet some people at a local dojo. He quickly put on a pair of regular clothes that had been placed in the closet for him. He wanted to stand out as little as possible, seeing as how the last time he was in one of the ninja villages… his stay wasn't quite as pleasant. When he went outside, people hurried to a point in the center of the village. _Perfect._ He thought, as he went to check out what was going on.

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Sakura sat working peacefully, but extremely bored at the Konohagakure hospital. Suddenly, Tsunade appeared in front of her like the wind and said "We are having a town meeting, so go to the center." Sakura said quickly "Oh, sure. Let's go" They each disappeared in a blur. "Say." Began Sakura as they were flying through the air. "Did William ever go to your office, because I forgot to tell him." "Yeah, he came because I notified the head nurse ahead of time and knew you'd forget." "Oh" Sakura said, than yelled "Hey!" Tsunade let out a chuckle and said "Relax. You're still my best student!" Inner Sakura proclaimed _Damn Right!!!_

"Sakura." Tsunade said. "This meeting is serious and will address what we do about Naruto, and I need you."

"Right." Sakura replied, as they lept in silence

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Hinata was doing some daily training with Shino and Kiba. True, they weren't a team any more because they were long past being genins, but they were still friends and trained well together.

_Something's not right._ Thought Kiba. Sure, Hinata' jyuken was at its prime and she was sparring like there was no tomorrow, but she seemed really angry… or something. Shino and Kiba exchanged glances, filled with looks of concern and question. Kiba decided to ask about it.

"So, Hinata. Did your mission go okay?" Hinata tensed for a moment, but shrugged it off and simply nodded up and down. She seemed distracted.

Kiba stared at Shino and continued "That's good. As long as nothing went wrong…" Hinata immediately said "Nothing happened so you can stop asking about it. I just want to train." "Whoa, whoa take it easy, Hinata. Okay. So the mission went well." Kiba said, as he threw a few kunai at Hinata, which she simply redirected with her hands.

Suddenly, William walked by near the edges of town, and he didn't seem to notice them, but they noticed him.

"Hey, that looks like a…" Kiba began, his face than forming that of rage, and he was off in the blink of an eye.

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William was walking near the edge of town. He had had his fair share of roundhead insults and mean looks. He decided that he would make himself at least partially useful in this city, even if it wasn't being the strongest fighter. _Hey! Is that a blacksmith?_ He thought, than smiled. William always had been a good metal worker, and he loved doing just that. _Hopefully I can become an apprentice._ Out of the corner of his eye, William saw the unthinkable. A ninja on a giant dog heading full speed towards him. Having no time to defend himself, William was bashed and flew a good 15 feet up the road. After the initial daze, he struggled to get up and withdrew his shield and claymore. That would surely leave a mark. _Man, I really don't want to fight. I don't need trouble right now. Just leave me alone!_

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Girard strode down the center of the street. Thankfully he wasn't attracting too much attention. Thousands were gathered in the central square already. Girard felt a desire to know if William was okay but, for some reason, not as strong as it would have been a few days ago. He shrugged it off and felt bad for thinking that way. Someone knew who he was. A man with a mask over one of his eyes and silver hair appeared in front of him and tucked a small 'Icha Icha' book into one of his pockets

"Girard." Kakashi began, with a sort of bored expression, however the mask hid some excitement. "I've been meaning to talk to you. Walk with me to the town assembly." Girard nodded and they walked.

"So, the Grandmaster is finally in Konoha." Kakashi said, than continued " I still remember how over a year ago, several men died by your side right outside the gate, but you stood firm and slaughtered several ninja. It was the most memorable thing I had ever seen. Than, even though you were a few yards from our walls, you just rode off into the forest, back from where you came from."

Girard was initially on alert, but than settled into a warm, familiar attitude and said "Well, it beats being in the Gladitorial games in sound." They chuckled slightly, even though that story was sad. Kakashi said "It would be very interesting if we could train sometime. I want to see just what exactly you do." "Just don't hit me with a chidori."

They then than retained a serious faces as Kakashi spoke, "You know, your student looks almost exactly the same as a student I once had." He said with a tint of sadness in his voice, but than looked at Girard. "We should follow his progress closely." Kakashi said. "Yeah" Girard added. "Someone has to protect him with all the crazy events that are happening." They walked in silence and finally reached the courtyard. _Maybe Ninjas can be friends, or at least good acquaintances thought_ Girard, as he let out a small smile

"Friends of Konoha." Tsunade began.

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All William could do was to parry some shots due to Kiba's amazing speed and throw out some futile slashes. William was hit 3 more times and was flying in countless directions. "That's all you can do!" Kiba roared as he took out a kunai. "Kiba Stop!" Hinata yelled. Kiba stopped with a perplexed look on his face. Shino simply slapped his head at Kiba's ignorance. "What? Why should we protect this roundhead!? And why does he look exactly like Naruto?"

"We met on the mission. It's okay Kiba." Kiba just stood there glaring at William, than backed away slightly, still with an angry look. She looked sad and very concerned for William, and she knew she could do nothing for him. She let out a rushed "Um, William…I'm so sorry. Maybe you and me could do some missions… or maybe join a team, or, or…" William just stared at all of them, especially Hinata, with a broken look, than slowly walked off into the city, than began to run, which looked pathetic as it was because of how slow it was compared to a ninja. William's pride had been hurt and he just felt like screaming off his insane depression. He was broken.

_I'm worthless and Pathetic!_ He yelled in his mind. _No-one likes me or needs me anywhere! How could Hinata betray me? Yeah, of course it happens to me. It wasn't really her fault though… but still. I don't want to be here!_

"WAIT!" Hinata called. Just then, an ANBU member appeared to them and said "proceed to the town square immediately. The Hokage has called a town meeting." With one last look in William's direction, Hinata took off with the others.

Hinata thought _Great. W_hy_ does this always happen to me? I mess everything up! Can I do nothing right? That's two people that I've messed up with. I've always been weak and not able to do a damn thing about anything…including help the man I love. Well, no more. _

With that, her sorrow and resolve were strengthened as they continued on towards the meeting.

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It had been a long, yet gripping speech that held people's attention. Towards the end of it, Tsunade proclaimed for all to hear "Therefore, now that we know what fate Naruto has been sentenced, who will go with me to rescue him?" Jiraiya was up there, along with Kakashi (who just jumped up there), Yamato, Sakura, and a few ANBU members. Sadly, most of the people did nothing and just stared at her with cold faces. Sure, a lot of jounin and chuunin were currently on missions, but this said a lot about the people. One man shouted "That's good; they finally have the demon brat! Let him die!"

Everything was silent for a moment. Tsunade was about to loose it and pound that man, when Girard, slowly but steadily, attracting a lot of attention from the crowd because they recognized him, ran up to the group and exclaimed "I must be a part of this mission." Everyone stared at him. "Roundhead!" a few said, and others proclaimed "Is that Girard? Why is he alive?" Still others were just in awe, saying "Girard is here..."

Knowing that Girard would complicate the mission due to his lack of abilities, Tsunade would have turned him down, but when she saw the sincerity and determination in his face, she couldn't say no. After all, he, for some reason, could kill ninja. "Welcome to the team." After many long moments of awkward, horrible silence, no-one else volunteered. "Right" the Hokage seethed, still angry about the people's will. "Everyone, get some rest. We leave at 5:00 a.m. tomorrow. Remember, Naruto's life depends on us. I will give people who want to help Naruto one more chance, even though you don't deserve to save his life! You can…come see me if you want to register."

Everyone cleared out of the square. Girard quickly met some of the ninja he would travel with and abruptly left to find one person: William. He felt ashamed over how he viewed William, as slightly less honorable as it was, ever since his encounter with the strange apparition. _William, I need to let some things out to you…I'm so sorry. But I know that I will discover our purpose on this mission. I need to fight this battle, William. _

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William cried slightly, but sucked it in because he was a knight for crying out loud! He still felt horrible and ran into a secluded alley. He just remembered that lots of people were heading to the center for some reason. Suddenly, he felt a trickle of fear shiver through his veins. The same apparition he had seen in his dreams and long ago was standing in the darkness of the alley, beckoning him forth with his finger. "William." The figure started, than said "Come, take my hand." William got over his initial fear as he had been learning to do up till now and said "You again." For some reason, this "person" always brought William's rage to a boil, and now was no exception. However, the rage turned to sadness, as William said, for some unknown reason "I can't fight my destiny." He said as he boldly hugged the figure as a child would hug a father. Weird things that a person wouldn't normally do occurred around this figure. The apparition smiled under his hood.

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There's the chapter for you. I decided to make this one longer because… actually, I don't know why. I guess everyone just eventually makes their chapters longer and longer in fan fiction, which is good if I can keep updating. Please review, and enjoy! What will happen next? Keep reading!


	6. Worth

"Speech"

_Thought_

((Flashback))

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto!

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In an anonymous location, Naruto's eyes popped open. Pain observed him with slight shock and said to himself _His eyes are open, but unseeing… Something in the world prompted this action. _Naruto continued to lay there as he had been doing in his previous state, and a look of thoughtfulness crossed Pain's face. Everyone was gone, but there was a certain person he needed to see…

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William froze dead in his tracks. Sure, he was in an abandoned alley which was weird enough on its own, but he was stunned. Did he really just communicate with that…thing? He had the impression that one would experience after waking up from a dream into reality. He looked around frantically. He was gone! Suddenly, the warm atmosphere of being with the apparition shattered with a crash. Fear crept slowly up his spine as he realized these things. Did he really do that?! What was that thing! However, it soon left and William remembered everything he was told and a smirk crossed his face. He had a task to carry out.

Just then, Hinata rounded the bend of the alleyway.

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Hinata had immediately volunteered to join in the retrieval party for Naruto. Nothing would stop her from getting her Naruto-kun back. She just couldn't mess things up anymore. She had been a little late to the meeting because of the incident with William, which reminded her that she should find William and apologize to him personally. She needed to make things right and she felt horrible. Suddenly, a stray thought popped into her head. _William reminds you of Naruto._ She thought about it for a while. Hinata was still confused about her feelings for William and Naruto, but she knew without a doubt that she still loved Naruto… maybe. Or perhaps she loved them both? She shook her head in stress, and the thought was rephrased into _Why should William remind you of Naruto?_ Hinata was concerned with this thought. She felt a slight chill course through her.

She was about to leave the meeting when she was invited to hang out with several of her chuunin friends, including the Ino-Shika-Cho team. She promptly, yet politely refused and went off in search of the second blond teenager in her life. Little did she know that someone was following her.

She hurried back to where she had seen William last and simply traced his steps in the direction where he had run off. There were several paths he could have taken, so she simply activated her Byakugan. She spotted William and immediately ran in that direction to the alleyway, and when she arrived, a look of alertness and worry crossed her face.

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"William…" Hinata began. "What are you doing back here?" It was strange that William was smirking in a dark alley sure enough, but there was a certain trace of something left behind that was remotely similar to chakra... but then again it wasn't. Whoever the person was, it was gone now.

William saw her and immediately replied "Nothing."

"Was someone with you?" she replied with a tone of worry. William hesitated, but said an abrupt "No" with a slightly annoyed tone.

Silence ensued for a moment. They just stared at each other.

_I can't quite place it, but something about William seems… different._ Hinata thought.

William looked deeply into her eyes and there seemed to be an inner struggle in him. He appeared ready and longing to tell her something, but stopped himself. He than surprised her and walked out of the alleyway, the way he had come.

Hinata just stood there looking after him. Something flickered in her periphial vision. When she looked, something vanished in a blur and left another trace. Suddenly, she began to get nervous. Something had definitely been watching them, and William had been there alone before she came. With a new sense of urgency for William (the sense for his life being in danger, that is) Hinata caught up to him and walked by his side. William said nothing, nor even looked at her. "William…" she began.

Kiba arrived on the scene and said "Hinata, I think it would do you good to hang out…" but than stopped as he saw William walking with her. He quickly gave him a scowl, however William's behavior compared to last time was strange. He didn't even glance in Kiba's direction, and when Hinata stopped to recognize Kiba, he kept walking the way he was before. He was either deliberately ignoring Kiba because of what happened earlier, or he just didn't care. Kiba began to get more than a little pissed off. "Not him again! Hinata, we should leave."

Suddenly, a wave of emotion surged up in Hinata and she thought _Well, if William doesn't want me to accompany him…_ She than agreed, and with a final look at William, took off with Kiba. William kept walking in his previous direction, not even glancing at the departing two.

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After the meeting, Girard got a little sidetracked with Kakashi. Girard found himself at one of Konoha's dojos. He was currently "sparring" (a better definition would be holding up his shield, getting flung back occasionally, and starring in shock) with Guy. That man was a beast in combat and his speed was incredible! Even his student Lee could show him a thing or two.

In an instant Guy was nowhere to be seen in the air and giving Girard a roundhouse kick to the face. He barely got his shield up in time. Girard went back a few feet though. There was nothing Girard could really do. Girard decided to see what would happen if he fought with his double handed bastard sword. Gai came flying at him from the ground this time and Girard held the sword in front of him in a parrying-like motion. Girard than slightly moved the hilt upwards. Guy wisely aborted his attack and stood 10 feet away from Girard.

"Amazing…" Gai began. "I would have definitely been impaled on that attack if I followed through. So how do you do that? Is it merely brute force? You are surely ripe in your youth!" Girard didn't know how to respond. For one, Gai could eat him alive and Girard was only barely surviving in that match, yet Gai wanted to know his secret?

"That's kind of a long story. You could say practice I guess." Girard said quietly. He didn't deserve this sort of publicity for his skills because he wasn't a ninja.

Suddenly Girard remembered William. Deep inside, he knew he needed to talk to him. Girard sighed and said "I'll catch you guys later." With that he left, leaving behind a few pensive ninja.

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William walked through Konoha. He was greeted with insults and bad looks, but he couldn't care less. All he wanted to do was to reach Konoha's outer wall. The sun was beginning to set in the western sky. When he arrived, he quickly climbed one of the ladders and stood on the wall. Between now and when Hinata had seen him, his determination to carry out the task explained to him began to deter with his rising sadness. William just stared out over the forest and into the setting sun. _It's beautiful._ William stood there until it was completely dark and stars covered the sky. _It's so beautiful._ William's smile had long since turned to one of grief and thoughtfulness. He knew what he had to do. When logic set in, Hinata also set in in his mind and all he could do was stare out over the trees. "William…" William just stared over the trees. The voice carried over the night sky "You must do it eventually…Do you doubt me child … …What's life worth to make a person happy?" William knew that the apparition was speaking to him somehow, but he didn't even flinch at the voice. Finally, William got closer to the edge. The time was now. William withdrew his gladius. William approached as far as he could to the edge and…

"William!"

William froze. That was Girard's voice. William looked back and Girard was on the wall. "Thank heavens William. It took me forever to find you. Who knew you were on the wall…" Girard stopped and looked at William. "What were you doing up here?"

William sighed, stepped away from the very edge and looked out to the night sky. "Girard" he began "Have you ever known something that you wanted to deny, but you knew it was true?"

Girard blinked in confusion. Suddenly, he remembered the apparition he had seen. Girard came closer to William and said "Actually, yes. I have recently been pondering that question. However, I know who I am and what I believe in. I may not understand everything" he paused and continued "But I believe in our destiny. We are here for a reason. I won't deter from that path!" he paused again and William just continued to stare out into the deep night sky. "Recently, I have deterred, but I'm here to make it right." Girard told William to kneel.

William had a look of even more grief and said "No…please. I don't deserve…"

He was cut off when Girard withdrew his sword and recited his creeds. He than dubbed William on both of his shoulders and finally his head and said "Rise, William. If I don't return from this mission alive, you are the new Grandmaster."

After a moment of silence, William flew into a burst of emotion and he hugged Girard as a son would to a father. Girard hugged him back, than said "Now, what were you doing up here?"

William said "Looking at the beauty around me…for the first time in a while." With that they began walking down the ladder and William said "I have a feeling that I need to go to the Hokage's office and register for a mission, any mission. Also, there's a person I need to see." Girard decided not to press for further questions as they walked together. Girard smiled.

William and Girard walked for a little while further. Girard had told William where his apartment was and that William had one near his in the city. After an exchange of good night, they parted paths. William looked back at the wall they had left. William could not believe what he was about to do on the wall. He felt slightly unnerved about everything that had happened to him. He knew what he had to do in the long run as he stared at that wall, however, he knew what he needed to do now. After asking several people and ignoring the insults, he finally learned the directions to the Hyuuga compound.

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When William arrived, it was around 10:00 at night. Of course, the guards didn't let him in.

"Is Hinata present? I need to see her." William said.

The guards just glared at him and said "Leave you demon fox." When they said that, William was slightly intrigued but confused. "Why would you call me that?"

They just stared at him. One of them went inside, and a few minutes later returned and said "Hiashi orders you off the grounds at once, roundhead." Now this insult he was up to date with. "Oh… well could you leave her a message?" They just continued to glare. William finally just walked in a random direction, away from there. He sighed.

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Hinata was coming home after being with her friends for a few hours. Sure, they were a good time, but she couldn't stop thinking about William and what he was feeling. Hinata hated sake, but to be polite to her friends, she drank a small glass when she was with them because they did. Sometimes they got drunk. However, this time several people, including Neji, her cousin, were in high merriment and were discussing old times. Hinata just was too worried so she left and thanked her friends. Also, Hiashi didn't approve of her being out, even though lately he was being slightly more complacent on that issue.

When Hinata arrived, she saw William at the gate. She was out of sight, so she approached slowly. She had seen everything at the gate and viewed William walking off. Hinata smiled to herself for this opportunity even though she was grieved over William. She took to the rooftops and followed William. Home could wait, at least for a while.

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In the forest by the Western wall, a man with red clouds over his cloak and red eyes stood watching. Also, a long distance away, a man with a cloak over his face watched the wall, grinned, and simply disappeared.

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Well, that's the chapter. Hope you enjoyed! Any reviews would be nice. Thank you for reading! Hopefully, writer's block stays away permanently!


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